Background environments can be linked to the virtual (music program) triggers so the total environment is affected by what the user plays.
Background Color Organ
Color organs assign a color to a specific frequency range of an audio track—typically 3 or 4 color ranges. Each range illuminates its respective colored light where the brightness is linked with the volume level. Depending on which frequency ranges are the loudest at the moment, different variations of colors are produced, and they all pulse with the music they represent. Although color organs have been around for a long time, this behavior can be mimicked by assigning the different colors to each of the beam triggers, where their brightness is controlled by the audio output level of the trigger being broken. This makes the background environment part of the interactive music experience as well.
FIG. 3 illustrates four virtual triggers 300 in the Foreground cyber environment. The virtual triggers 300 are shown on top of an empty Background environment 302. The illustrated virtual triggers 300 are Guitar 304, DJ Deck 306, Saxophone 308, and Keyboard instrument 310. The virtual triggers 300 are spatial and “float” in front of the background environment 302 collectively forming a cyber environment 312.
There can be any number of virtual triggers 300, and the virtual triggers 300 can be placed anywhere in the cyber environment 312, directly in front of the user, or off to the side, requiring the user to look to the side to see them.
The virtual trigger 300 can be any Cyber Reality object or element that indicates when a user interacts with it. These interactive Cyber Reality objects/elements send standard gestures or notifications to an Application Engine 502, as shown in FIG. 5, when the user interacts with them in a prescribed way. The Application Engine 502 sends a Trigger-ON notification to a sound engine 504 when a gesture is received from a virtual trigger 300, and a corresponding Trigger-OFF is sent when the gesture ends.
Interactive virtual triggers 300 are configured to manipulate the Foreground environment to provide visual feedback on a display when they are triggered, such as, but not limited to, highlighting or altering the trigger imagery in some way, or by introducing additional graphic objects into the foreground. Such trigger-specific manipulations cause the cyber reality Foreground to be dynamically linked to the music programs such as previously described that are being interactively triggered.
Background Kaleidoscope
A kaleidoscope is rendered as background—optionally pulsing to the music.
Each virtual (music program) trigger 300 is assigned to alter a component in a formula that produces the kaleidoscopic image, altering the color, or the kaleidoscope imagery when it is triggered.
FIG. 4 shows an embodiment of a cyber environment 312 where the virtual triggers 300 are arranged to present a wall of music instrument icons in front of the user within the cyber environment 312. The virtual triggers 300 appear in front of a background environment 302 consisting of an interactive kaleidoscope that is being controlled by the virtual (music program) triggers 300.
The virtual triggers 300 are configured to manipulate the background cyber environment 302 when they are triggered, such as, but not limited to, modifying the color properties of specific elements in the display or changing the imagery entirely.
On an individual basis, each virtual trigger 300, or the sound produced by the virtual trigger 300, controls or adjusts a unique color component for the display. The brightness of the color could optionally be linked to the volume level of the sound being produced by the virtual trigger 300.
In addition, each virtual trigger 300 can increase or decrease the value of a property used to generate the kaleidoscopic design itself (Number of petals, Number of orbits, Radial suction, & Scale factor). The amount of adjustment can be linked to the volume level of the sound being interactively produced by the virtual trigger 300.
The same concept can be applied to simulated multi-colored laser displays that draw geometric patterns in the cyber reality background, where the color attributes or geometric rendering properties are manipulated interactively by the virtual triggers 300 and/or the sounds that are interactively produced by the virtual triggers 300.
Such trigger-specific manipulations cause the cyber reality background 302 to be dynamically linked to the music programs that are being interactively triggered.
FIG. 5 illustrates a diagram of a system 500 for multilayered media playback in Cyber Reality in accordance with embodiments of the present disclosure.
The system 500 can be implemented in electronic device 501, and embodied as one of a computer, a smart phone, a tablet, a touchscreen computer, a cyber reality headset 601 and the like having a display 505.
Application engine 502 is operable on an electronic processor 503 and receives one or more Gestures from the multiple virtual triggers 300 within the cyber reality environment 312, such as shown in FIG. 3, FIG. 4, and FIG. 6.
Application engine 502 controls playback of media files 506 that are combined to form a multilayered media file based on one or more of Gesture inputs 508, and definition file 510 via sound engine 504. The media files 506 can be one or more MIDI files, samples such as .wav and .mp3 files, video files in a plurality of formats, and/or any other audio or video file format.
Gesture inputs 508 include one or more standard gestures that indicate when and how an interactive virtual trigger 300 is being “touched” by the user within the cyber environment 312. Gesture inputs 508 used for triggering may include, but are not limited to, a Tap gesture, and a Tap-and-Hold gesture.
With a Tap gesture, the touch is held at substantially the same point within the virtual trigger 300 for a substantially short period of time, such as with a threshold for the short period of time of 0.5 seconds or less. The application engine 502 can use the Tap gesture to trigger a one-shot, play a single note in a streamed sequence, or start and stop a loop.
With a Tap-and-Hold gesture, the touch is held at substantially the same point within the virtual trigger object 300 a longer period of time, such as with a threshold for the longer period of time of 0.5 seconds or more. Additional thresholds may be used for Tap-and-Hold gesture with each threshold associated with a different action to be taken by the application engine 502.
The Application engine 502 can use a Tap-and hold gesture to Pulse (stream) notes.
Processor 503 is configured such that visual outputs from application engine 502 are displayed within the cyber reality environment 312 and output from sound engine 502 is played on speaker 512. The combination of application engine 502 and sound engine 504 form an application on the processor 503. The processor 503 is configured to selectively associate a music programs with each of the plurality of virtual triggers. The processor 503 is configured such that when one of the virtual triggers 300 is in a first state for a prolonged period of time successive said audible musical sounds are generated, such that, for instance, the musical program associated with the virtual trigger continues to play uninterrupted, along with any other music programs that are playing in response the associated virtual trigger 300 being triggered.
Display 505 displays the total cyber reality environment 312, which includes Foreground and Background visualizations.
When a virtual trigger 300 is virtually touched or triggered by a user Gesture, trigger-specific visual output from application engine 502 can be shown to simulate triggering a virtual trigger 300 within the cyber reality environment 312.
When a virtual trigger 300 is triggered by a user Gesture, trigger-specific visual output from application engine 502 can be shown to alter the display properties or attributes of any element within the cyber reality environment 312, such as the virtual triggers 300 in the Foreground or what the user sees in the Background behind the virtual triggers 300.
FIG. 6 shows how a user interacts with the cyber environment 312 shown in FIG. 4, where the virtual triggers 300 are arranged to present a wall of music instrument icons in front of the user as seen in a cyber reality headset display 601. The virtual triggers 300 appear in the cyber reality space in front of the user who interacts with them by physically reaching out to where the virtual triggers 300 are perceived to be within the cyber reality display 312 and touching them in a prescribed way with hands or a hand-held controller.
Although applicant has described applicant's preferred embodiments of the present disclosure, it will be understood that the broadest scope of this disclosure includes such modifications as diverse shapes, sizes, materials, and content types. Further, many other advantages of applicant's disclosure will be apparent to those skilled in the art from the above descriptions, including the drawings, specification, and other contents of this patent application and the related patent applications.